Oshawa firefighters head into trenches for training

Technical rescue team practises simulation with dummy

Trench rescue training

Sabrina Byrnes / Metroland

OSHAWA -- Oshawa firefighters did trench rescue training with the help of Brookfield Homes and Pilen Construction, who provided the site for the exercise. Rescue technicians Chris Taylor and Justin Squires secured the strong-backs in the rescue site. August 21, 2013

Trench rescue training

Sabrina Byrnes / Metroland

OSHAWA -- Oshawa firefighters conducted trench rescue training with the help of Brookfield Homes and Pilen Construction, who provided the site for the training exercise. Rescue technicians Chris Taylor and Justin Squires worked on securing the strong-backs in the rescue site. August 21, 2013

Trench rescue training

Sabrina Byrnes / Metroland

OSHAWA -- Oshawa firefighters conducted trench rescue training with the help of Brookfield Homes and Pilen Construction, who provided the site for the training exercise. Rescue technicians Chris Taylor and Justin Squires worked in the rescue site. August 21, 2013

Trench rescue training

Sabrina Byrnes / Metroland

OSHAWA -- Oshawa firefighters conducted trench rescue training with the help of Brookfield Homes and Pilen Construction, who provided the site for the training exercise. Rescue technicians Chris Taylor and Justin Squires worked in the rescue site. August 21, 2013

DURHAM -- It’s a 14-feet-long, nine-feet-deep trench and a group of 12 Oshawa firefighters stare at the bottom, where a dummy lies.

It’s a very complex training scenario the technical rescue team has been practising over the last week. Instead of rappelling off a building on Ritson Road as part of one of their traditional exercises, the firefighters are practising body recovery in trench training.

After reaching out to local construction companies in the area, training officers Scott Wood and Tod Wood received a call from Pilen Construction and Brookfield Homes. The two companies agreed to dig a trench at their construction site near Beatrice Street East, just south of Townline Road in Oshawa.

“This is something pretty difficult to get our hands on. These companies are proud supporters of our services and recognize the need for training,” said Scott Wood.

The group hasn’t practised this type of training in a few years. Trenches are usually dug at Station 5, but the soil became disturbed and is no longer safe for the crews to use as it creates a bigger risk of collapse. The team kept moving and digging at different locations around the station, until they eventually ran out of space.

“This just fell in our laps a couple of days ago. We had to change the schedule because this is something pretty difficult to get our hands on,” said Scott Wood. “This is hands-on training. As much as we can do theory and get the equipment out and look at it, this hands-on training is so important to us because it gives us those innate abilities to just have it all come together in the time of need.”

Not only is the training complex, but so are the tools. They are specifically designed for trench application. The firefighters are instructed to use every piece of equipment.

“We are always trying new things because every scenario is different,” said first-class firefighter Nathan Langille.

“When you’re in a pinch, there are some nice little tricks to know,” added firefighter Mike Barlow.

The equipment includes air shores, which can push 250 pounds of pressure back against the soil. Large yellow pieces of wood, called strong-backs, are used to distribute the weight. The 12 firefighters are highly skilled in trench rescue and are taught the important lesson of slow and steady wins the race.

“This is one of the hardest things we do, simply because you need a lot of manpower. The equipment is very heavy and there’s a lot of it. Not to mention, it’s quite the slow process. We have to make sure that everyone is protected, including our own guys, and to care for the guy that’s in the hole, it’s hard to do,” said Mr. Barlow.

The objective is to put the shores up to prevent further soil collapse. The system is built to protect the victim, as well as the firefighters, so they can get the victim out as quickly and efficiently as possible. In this case, speed was not a factor.

“In a lot of cases if there is a collapse, it’s just a body recovery,” said Scott Wood. “At that point, there’s no point in rushing. It’s risk versus reward. So we methodically take our time and remove the deceased victim in the area. If the person is still alive and in trouble, we obviously ramp it up ... but there are a lot of considerations here when you do this.”

One of the first things the firefighters are required to do is to identify the soil conditions. According to Scott Wood, there are three to four different soil classifications in one trench. It is important for the soil to be native and never disturbed before, in order to prevent further collapse.

The firefighters put down ground pads to distribute their own weight around the hole. They identify areas of concern, such as cracking in the soil around the hole and then they can finally get to work.

Scott Wood says real-life trench rescue situations are rare, but the firefighters must be prepared. He cited a workplace accident a few years ago in Oshawa. A construction worker had been working on a backside of a garage that was built into a hill. When the dirt was removed from the foundation, the garage wall collapsed and the man was instantly killed.

“These things happen from time to time, you may never know. A lot of our job is to train for these things that we may not get to tomorrow, but moving on sometime in the future, at some point it is going to happen. We need to keep up those skills.”

Leeanna McLean is the videographer and social media reporter for Metroland Durham Region Media Group.